The New Zealand bowlers would not have imagined that the match which was in their control for the first three days would slip away in just one session. When the Black Caps entered the ground to chase a 239-run victory target on the fourth day, there were smiling faces all over the Lords historic gallery. But it was only a matter of time and one could sense disappointment in the air. New Zealand were all out for 68 runs as England trounced the visitors by 170 runs.

Nobody could stand the destructive juggernaut of Stuart Broad and James Anderson. Broad achieved his career best performance, taking seven wickets off 44 and Anderson took three. They outshone the impressive 10-wicket haul by New Zealand’s Tim Southee.

The New Zealand came back in the match despite their mediocre performance in first innings. It was only because of their bowlers who sent last eight English batsmen to the pavilion for just 54 runs.

But then the match’s frightening stage began for New Zealanders which concluded with their last batsman falling. The first six Kiwi batsmen could not reach double digit barring two players – wicket-keeper Bradley-John Watling and Neil Wagner with13 and 17 runs respectively. The whole team was bowled out for just 68 in the 23rd over, giving away an unassailable lead to England in the two-match Test series.

England decided to bat after winning the toss and could not gather a reasonable total facing the outstanding performances by New Zealand’s pacers. The first day was not that bad for the hosts as they were 160 for four but their last six batsmen could only add 72 runs the next morning. Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow were the leading runs scorers with 40 and 42 runs, respectively. Thus, no English batsman could come close to a half-century in the 232-run innings. Matt Prior, who recently salvaged the team against New Zealand, was bowled out on the first ball by Southee. He took four wickets off 58 in the innings, Wagner took three, Trent Boult took two while Bruce Martin took one wicket.

New Zealand entered the ground, brimming with confidence after the lunch break, but soon realized that the condition which did not help hosts were not going to help the visitors. Hamish Rutherford and Peter Fulton were back in pavilion when the team’s score was just seven. But the third wicket fell on 100, thanks to a 93-run partnership between experienced Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson. Taylor scored 66 off 72. Had Dean Brownlie not lost his wicket in the last moments, the second day would have been termed as the New Zealand’s day who performed well with both the ball and the bat. They were 153 at the stumps and were still trailing by 78 runs with six wickets in hand.

The start of the third day was a replica of what had happened to England the previous day. New Zealand could only add 54 runs with six wickets and were all out on 207, which means a trail of 25 runs. After Taylor’s 66, the second best performance was by Williamson who scored 60. Anderson was the most successful bowler of the first innings, who took five wickets off 47 and also reached 300 Test wickets in his career. Steven Finn clinched four wickets and Broad took one.

After gaining a lead despite a low total in the first innings, England started their second innings and suffered an initial shock after the back-to-back fall of Alastair Cook’s and Nick Compton’s wickets. Jonathan Trott and Joe Root then played the most decisive innings of the match. Together they added 123 runs in the third wicket, which later proved fruitful. Trott scored 56 off 137 and Root pitched in 71 off 120.

[caption id="attachment_1010" align="alignright" width="300"] Even aggressive bowling and fielding could not help New Zealand (Photo: Getty Images)[/caption]

At one stage when England seemed poised to make a good total, New Zealand stole the show, taking the wickets of Root, Bairstow, Prior and Trott. The third day ended with 180 runs on the scoreboard at the loss of six wickets.

The hosts scored 33 more runs on the fourth day, with Broad remaining not-out for 26.

Tim Southee took six wickets in the third innings to complete his 10-wicket haul in the match. Williamson took two while Boult and Wagner took one wicket apiece.

What happened to New Zealand in the fourth innings was a nightmare for the visitors. Broad claimed the wickets of Fulton, Rutherford, Taylor, Williamson and McCullum while Anderson sent Brownlie packing from the second end, building up an impregnable air of victory. New Zealand were a sorry sight as the scorecard was showing 29 runs off six wickets. The visitors were all out on 68. Broad received the man-of-the-match award for his riveting performance. It was the first time in 78 years that only two English bowlers took all the wickets in an innings.

Both teams will play the second Test on May 24 at Headingley, Leeds after which three warm-up matches will be held before the Champions Trophy.

Clarification: In the earlier version of the story it was reported that England bowler Stuart Broad took 10 wickets in the match. The correct version should read that he took eight wickets. The error is regretted.